A 16-year-old boy has attacked a juvenile magistrate in his office at the Portalis Building opposite the Brussels courthouse. The teenager was there to discuss whether or not he should remain in locked up at a secure youth detention centre. When the magistrate told the youth that he was to remain in custody, the teenager spat at him and attempted to physically assault him.
The boy was at the Portalis building with his lawyer and member of staff from a secure youth detentions centre run by the Francophone Language Community where he is being held.
At the end of the meeting the juvenile magistrate dealing with the teenager's case said that the youth should remain at the secure youth detention centre, where he had been held for the previous 30 days. This was met with a furious reaction from the boy, who spat at the magistrate and tried to punch him in the face. Police officers that were standing outside the office reacted swiftly, overpowering the boy before returning him to the secure youth detention centre.
The news that first appeared in the Francophone daily ‘La Dernière Heure’ has since been confirmed by the public prosecutor’s office. A spokesperson for the public prosecutor’s office told the Brussels regional news site ‘Bruzz’ that "A crime report has been drafted for threatening behaviour and insulting a judge”.
The reason why the boy is being held at a secure youth detention facility or why it was decided that he is to remain there has not been disclosed. "As this concerns a minor the prosecutor’s office will be issuing no further comment”.